


Gravity

by galaxystiel



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Alternate Universe - College/University, Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Human, Childhood Friends, Friends to Lovers, Growing Up Together, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-15
Updated: 2016-06-15
Packaged: 2018-07-15 04:47:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,481
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7208321
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/galaxystiel/pseuds/galaxystiel
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Five times Dean walked away from Castiel and one time he found his way back.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Gravity

**1.**

They’re seven years old the first time Dean moves away.

Their families live next door to each other, Dean and Castiel have been friends for longer than they’ve been able to talk. They’re inseparable, always together. They’re in the same grade at school, they play together during recess. Even after school, they’re always at each other’s houses, or out in the yard together.

Castiel says that Dean is his best friend and promises that they will be best friends forever.

Dean agrees, and adds that nothing is ever going to stop them from being friends, not even when they get old.

Unfortunately, life rarely works out that way, and shortly after Dean turns seven, Mary loses her job, and the Winchester family are forced to move across state.

When Dean and Castiel find out, they’re heartbroken.

“But you’ll still come back and play with me, right? On the weekend?” Castiel clutches Dean’s sleeve tightly, as if he’s worried Dean will disappear if he lets go.

Dean shakes his head. “Mom says it’s too far,” he replies with a sniffle. “I gotta go. Dad said to help pack up my toys. Bye, Cas.”

Castiel watches Dean leave through the window, and only when he disappears from sight does Castiel feel the tears start to flow.

 

* * *

**2.**

Dean comes back to town when Castiel is twelve.

Castiel has a few other friends now, but none that mean as much to him as Dean does. He still thinks back to his childhood best friend with fondness and wishes he hadn’t moved away.

So when Dean knocks on the door, it’s the best surprise of Castiel’s life.

He hugs Dean tightly, tugging him inside. “How have you been? You need to tell me everything.”

It turns out that Mary has been unable to hold down a permanent job, as nurses everywhere are suffering job cuts. Dean barely spends more than a year in the same city, moving around as another job comes up.

Unfortunately, this time he’s just in Lawrence while Mary interviews to get her old job back. When she’s unsuccessful, Dean is forced to leave again.

The second goodbye is just as painful. Castiel makes Dean promise to keep in touch, forces him write down his phone number so they can call and text.

Dean is long gone before Castiel realises that the number is one digit too short.

 

* * *

**3.**

Dean moves back into town permanently when they are fifteen and just starting their sophomore year.

Castiel doesn’t even know he’s back for two whole weeks, since they’ve taken very different classes and where Dean spends lunch in the cafeteria, Castiel spends it in the library.

When he spots Dean hanging out by the bleachers with a couple of members of the football team, Castiel can’t help running over to him.

“How long have you been back?” He gasps, trying to catch his breath. “I tried to call you but the number you gave me was missing a digit and…”

One of the jocks raises his eyebrow and sneers at Castiel. “Hey, Winchester, you know this dork?”

Dean stares at Castiel coolly for a moment and then shrugs. “Nah. Come on, let’s go check out the cheerleaders.”

He walks away, leaving Castiel devastated, staring after his old friend and wondering what happened to the promises they made long ago.

 

* * *

**4.**

They make up, of course. They always do. Dean apologises for the way he treated Castiel, explains he’d just wanted to impress the jocks because he wanted to try out for the football team.

Castiel forgives him, as he always does. But they’re never quite as close after that.

They start to hang out more in senior year, when Dean starts to date. Castiel watches as girl after girl takes their place by Dean’s side, wearing his letterman jacket, holding his hand and kissing him in the hallway. He doesn’t understand why he hates every single one of them, but they never stick around for long anyway.

Dean starts to struggle with Calculus, and Castiel ends up quitting the chess club just so he can tutor Dean without his friend having to quit football practice. Dean never thanks him for it, or even acknowledges what Castiel has done for him.

Castiel never says a word.

“So what are you doing for college?” Dean asks him one day, swinging back on his chair and trying to look cool every time Lisa Braeden looks over.

Castiel glances up. “I’ve applied to Harvard,” he shrugs.

Dean’s chair legs hit the floor with a thud. “Harvard? But… that’s in Boston!”

“Cambridge, actually…” Castiel frowns, not sure what Dean is driving at. “Why, where are you going?”

Dean is still staring at him, an unhappy look clouding his face. “KSU. What gives, man? I figured we’d go to college together and hang out.”

“That’s your dream, Dean,” Castiel replies quietly, because that has never been his plan. “Not mine.”

With a tick in his jaw, Dean grabs his bag and stalks out of the room. Castiel watches him leave with the sudden realisation that something has changed, and he doesn’t think he’ll be able to fix it.

 

* * *

**5.**

He’s twenty-one, and back in Lawrence for Christmas when Dean walks away from him for the last time.

He isn’t alone.

College has been good for Castiel. While he’s been able to retain a tentative friendship with Dean, they’ve both been too busy to contact each other for the last few months, so when Castiel turns up with a boyfriend in tow, the wind is knocked out of Dean’s sails.

It results it one hell of a fight.

“Were you ever going to hell me you were gay, Cas?”

Castiel shrugs. “Of course. If it ever became relevant. I’m not seeing what the big deal is here, Dean? Why are you so mad?”

“I’m mad, because I … because I thought…”

And it suddenly all becomes clear, but it’s too late and Castiel is furious, that Dean is doing this _now_ when his life is settled and he’s happy. He’s livid and Castiel hates him a little bit because he loves Dean and he always has.

“Did you expect me to always be here waiting?” Castiel chokes out, bitter tears stinging his eyes. “When was the last time you actually gave a shit about my feelings, Dean, huh? When we were in high school, when you couldn’t even spend time with me without being late or leaving early, because you were hooking up with someone. And even when you were with me, I never had your attention because you were always texting. Or maybe it was when you gave me unwavering your support when I told you I wanted to go to an Ivy League school? When have you ever cared about what I wanted?”

He can see it on Dean’s face when he realises that every slur Castiel just threw at him is true. He can’t deny any of it.

Dean turns on his heel and leaves the party, slamming the door and leaving Castiel to dissolve in tears, leaning into the touch when Balthazar’s arms slide around him.

 

* * *

**+1.**

Balthazar turns out to be a cheater, and when Castiel turns twenty-two, he has nobody.

Finals are killing him and he’s barely hanging on by a thread. His family are as supportive as they can be, but being all the way in Boston leaves Castiel pretty much isolated.

He sends Dean a text. [ _I miss you._ ]

He doesn’t get a reply.

He sends another the next day. [ _Balthazar dumped me, and finals are killing me. I feel like I’m drowning._ ]

Castiel still doesn’t get a reply. He doesn’t send a third.

He orders takeout, deciding he’ll at least have a good dinner before he has a mental breakdown. When the knock comes, he’s tired, but struggles to answer it.

He doesn’t expect Dean.

“What are you doing here?” He gapes, but stands back to let him in anyway.

Dean looks at him like Castiel has just said the most stupid thing in the world. “You needed me,” he says simply.

He says it like that’s all that needs to be said. It kind of is.

It’s not magically perfect. They don’t kiss and erase the last fifteen years. But Dean drove twenty-two hours just because Castiel said he needed him and that’s a start.

They stay up all night talking about the past.

Dean thanks Castiel for quitting chess club to tutor him. Castiel apologises for not trusting Dean enough to open up about his sexuality. It’s progress.

Dean stays the weekend, curled up on a crappy air mattress that he tugged out of the trunk of the Impala.

When he leaves, Castiel doesn’t watch him go. He doesn’t need to this time.

Because Dean always finds his way back and he’ll be there waiting when Castiel gets home.

**Author's Note:**

> ****  
>  [MY TUMBLR](http://blueeyedangel.co.vu)   
> 


End file.
